Experimental and numerical studies of micro- and macromechanical properties of modified copper-silicon carbide composites

The presented research investigation comprises the study of the mechanical properties of modified copper-silicon carbide composites at the micro- and macroscopic scale. The improvement of a copper silicon carbide composite refers to the addition of a protective layer at the ceramic reinforcement in order to prevent the dissolution of silicon in the copper matrix. The macromechanical behaviour has been evaluated by the performance in a small punch test. The investigation has been carried out with samples with varying volume content of ceramic reinforcement and different protective layers of the silicon carbide particles. Moreover, the influence of temperature during the strength test has been studied. Next, the results have been referred to the interfacial bonding strength of Cu and SiC particles. SEM characterization of samples has been performed to link the composites' microstructure with the mechanical behaviour. Finally, the experimental results of the small punch test have been predicted via a numerical approach. Finite element analysis has been employed to reproduce the response of the composite specimen during the test. Satisfactory agreement with the experimental curve has been obtained. (C) 2018 Published by Elsevier Ltd.